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Officials unsure of effects that pesticides are doing to Lower Red Lake
By Larry Adams
There are no apparent correlations
between the gamefish decline on
lower Red Lake and chemicals that
may be used in and around the
surrounding rice paddies. Red Lake
DNR officials claim.
According to Red Lake Aquatic
Biologist, Joel Rohde and Red Lake
DNR Fisheries Biologist, Dave
Connors, they claim that there
many extenuating circumstances to
explain any kind of gamefish
decline.
These comments are in response
to the article concerning chemicals
in Lower Red Lake in the July 3,
1992, issue of the Native American
Press. Sources in this article claim
that there are no serious effects
from the chemicals that may be in
Lower Red Lake. However, the
chemicals appear to present as well
as the siltation that was reported.
A source at the Red Lake
Fisheries attribute the June fishing
decline as part of a cycle that's
been happening over a 13-year
period.
Regarding the 33,000 pounds that
were brought in June is normal,
according to the Fisheries source.
"It's slow in June, [it] always is,"
the source said.
There are at least five "inland
stations" which monitor and detect
chemicals and water quality in
lower Red Lake, said Rohde.
Three stations located west of
Red Lake are the Red Lake River
the Sandy River and the Big Rock
River. The Pike Creek River in Red
Lake and Mud River of Redby are
the two other stations, claims Rohde.
The stations monitor phosphorous,
polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB's)
and methyl mercury, which are the
chemicals the DNR and the fishery
are very concerned with.
Rohde has been sending water
samples to the EPA lab in Duluth as
part of a two-year study of
chemicals in lower Red Lake. One
of the chemicals Rohde is most
concerned with is monitoring the
amount of phosphorous. The more
phosphorous in the water, the less
sunlight that gets to the plants.
The plants feed the roughfish and
when they spawn their young, the
fingerlings are food for the
gamefish.
However, Rohde would not release
any results to the NAP as he is still
collating data and information on the
study.
Dave Connors says that his
purpose as the Red Lake fish
biologist is to collect and assess data
on the Red Lakes.
Connors claims that the source of
the lead article in the July 3, 1992,
issue of the NAP "misinterpreted"
the information presented.
According to Connors, there are a
lot of other factors that are involved
in the gamefish decline, specifically
concerning the Red Lake walleye
population.
Other factors involved include
specific year classes of gamefish and
their hardiness, predation, natural
factors, the number and classes of
fishermen on lower Red Lake, the
types of nets used, possible chemical
contamination and the chemicals
themselves, claims Connors.
In 1970, there was a very hardy
year class of sheepshead in lower
Red Lake. That same year, the
walleye harvest at 500,000 pounds
and yellow perch harvest at 200,000
pounds were the lowest harvest of
walleye and yellow perch in the
history of the Red Lake Fisheries,
said Connors. The average annual
limit on walleye is 650,000 pounds
at the Red Lake Fisheries.
"The sheepshead from the strong
1970 year class are not of catchable
size, they're still babies," said
Connors.
"The speculation is that walleye
and perch have the potential to feed
on and crop off heavy year classes
of, for instance, sheepshead. But in
the absence of them [sheepshead]
during that critical year and two
after they were bom, this massive
year class [of sheepshead] were
allowed to take hold and find a niche
in the lake," Connors said.
In the five years that Connors has
been at the Red Lake DNR, more
than half of th sheepshead that the
commercial fishery takes is from
that 1970 year class.
The 1970 sheepshead are still
dominating the catch in lower Red
Lake. "Again, the speculation is that
there was a good year for the
production of sheepshead.
"Typically, if there was a lot of
walleye and a lot of predators
around that were three, four years
old, [like the] yellow perch, they'd
be eating those sheepshead"
[fingeriings,] said Connors.
Without natural predators like the
walleye and the yellow perch, the
sheepshead have become the
dominant species of lower Red
Lake.
There is no correlation in the
population of sheepshead and the
gamefish population, according to
Connors.
There have been big gaps in the
year classes of gamefish and other
species as well as considerable
increases. Another oddity is the fact
that the yellow perch intake was 1.7
million pounds in 1990. Such trends
as Connors' "boom or bust" theory
of fish population have yet to be
studied and understood.
Other factors that affect fish
population on lower Red Lake
include the increase of from 150 to
well over 600 commercial fishermen
now.
"It's far and away the largest
source" of fish mortality, Connors
said of the fishing in lower Red
Lake.
In addition to the fishes' natural
mortality, or being eaten by other
fish and the fish dying of old age,
there are other sources of fish
mortality.
There are at least four classes of
fishermen on lower Red Lake. They
include commercial, sport,
subsistence and "independent"
fishermen, said Connors.
Currently, there may be too many
fishermen fishing on Red Lake, the
sport, subsistence, or "gill netting"
and "independent" fishermen also
contribute to the decline, said
Connors.
Of the four categories, the
"independent" fishermen catch fish
population by using "illegal" nets to
catch fish with, Connors said.
The "independent" fishermen use
nets with a smaller mesh than Red
Lake fishing regulations allow.
These "illegal" nets have a smaller
mesh diameter than the regulation
of three and a half inches.
With the smaller openings, more
fish can be caught, but the fish will
be smaller and dumped because
these smaller fish are useless to most
fishermen as well as diminishing the
population.
According to the Red Lake
Fisheries Federal Code of
Regulations, each fishermen is
allowed a limit of eight nets that are
300 feet long by six feet deep a
night.
Some nets deeper than ten feet
have been confiscated. "A big factor
that we can't answer is the extent
that [the illegal gill-netting] that
goes on. Unfortunately, it's just
something we can't answer. We
know it goes on, and we know it has
a detrimental effect on the fish
population, but as far as trying to
identify the extent of it, it's just
something we can't identify," said
Connors.
Concerning what chemicals may
be in lower Red Lake, Dr. Bobby
Holder, a soil scientist at the
University of Minnesota, Crookston,
said it's hard for him to say exactly
what is going on in lower Red Lake.
Holder said that tests done on the
Clearwater River in 1990 and
concluded in 1991, southwest of
lower Red Lake showed that there
was evidence of phosphorous,
nitrogen, 2,4-D and Monoxydil.
Holder said that the seven
sampling sites did a "pretty complete
analysis" on the river as well as
some sites that were located in
wildrice paddies that surround lower
Officials/pg 3
By and For the Native American Community
fr
0«
Native
American
Press
We support Equal Opportunity For All People
A Weekly Publication
Tribes warned of false promises from gambling managers
Founded in 1991
Volume 2 Issue II
July 24, 1992
By Susan Stanich
New-Tribune staff writer
Bloomington, Minn. - Tribal
leaders should beware of
management companies that
descend on them with glittering
promises but unfair casino contracts.
That was the message a Shakopee
Sioux official gave Wednesday at
the annual National Indian Gaming
Association Convention.
The heated comments of Allene
Ross, vice chairperson of Mystic
Lake Casino near Minneapolis and
the only Indian on a management
panel, came after five other speakers
had advised tribal representatives on
how to pick management companies
and what to look for in contracts.
"I'm here to give you a tribal
perspective," said Ross, a former
tribal councilor. "I've heard a lot of
comments today like 'partnership'
and 'teamwork.' But in the past,
management contracts haven't given
us partnerships. They've give us
dictatorships and paternalism."
Some ofthe nation's 141 gambling
tribes manage their own operations.
Others turn everything over to
management companies, which
usually fund the building and
equipment and receive 40 percent of
the profits for five to seven years.
Ross said sometimes the managers
become dividers of the tribe as well,
maneuvering factions that they can
use to keep themselves in business.
"Our tribe didn't have factionalism
until we were fighting over a
management group," she said. "My
God, we were getting along well.
And now I don't thing we'll ever be
friends again."
Ross said the tribes hold most of
the power—jurisdiction, sovereign
right to license gambling, land—and
should drive hard bargains if they
use outside companies.
"But Indians are capable of
running our own casinos," she said.
Andrew Tottenham, who
represented an international gaming
consulting firm, cautioned that not
all management companies are alike.
When a new gaming jurisdiction
opens up—such as in Indian
Country and in Eastern Europe,
where his firm does business—"it's
a frontier and the first people in are
the cowboys," he said. "They write
contracts that give them a lot of
money; they put their own people on
the payroll; they give kickbacks to
contractors. There are a lot of sharks
out there."
Ross countered that her tribe offers
consulting services to tribes "for a
month, a week—whatever you need,
before you sign away 40 percent of
the profits."
The future looks bright for tribal
gambling, said the association's new
chairman, Charles Keechi, president
of the Delaware Tribe of Oklahoma.
Although the anti-tribal gaming
movement is busy and well-funded,
they are probably going to lose as
the public increasingly favors tribes'
rights to self-determination.
"Gaming is not an entertainment
industry as far as Indians are
concerned," he said. "We're
operating our enterprises for one
reason: To generate revenue to
help the infrastructure of tribal
governments, to help our citizens
with everything from eyeglasses to
education grants, to get medicine
for our elderly people...Nevada
and New Jersey gaming interests
are out there fighting Indian
gaming throughout the United
States. It's a matter of them
protecting their own turf, nothing
more."
As tribal gaming evolves,
unsavory characters—both in
management and among
customers—are being weeded out,
and networks are being established,
tribal officials said.
For example, Menominee Nation
police recently uncovered a
nationwide scam in which
'customers' use simple but
ingenious techniques to beat video
gambling machines.
The Wisconsin tribe filmed and
then closed in on three such
scammers, later trading them a break
on prosecution in exchange for
details of how the scam worked.
Copyright, The Native American Press, 1992
Bellanger drives Greyhound buses
Evelyn Bellanger a professional bus driver, ready to travel across country, pictured in front of her new rig.
National Indian Gaming Conference in Mpls
By Gary Blair
The National Indian Gaming
Association held its 1992
Conference and Trade Show at the
Radisson Hotel South in
Minneapolis. The 3-day event,
which was held July 20-22, attracted
Indian leaders from both the U.S.
and Canada. This year the
conference was titled, "Indian
Gaming U.S.A." The Press learned
from conference personnel that the
organization offered little
pre-publicity about the event,
because they didn't want to attract
groups opposed to "Indian Gaming."
This year the conference attracted
over 1500 visitors, including 124
exhibitors. There were cars in the
hotel's parking lot with license
plates from seemingly every part of
the country, including Canada.
Inside the hotel, casino managers
and their suppliers bumped elbows
at the bar and around the tables at
the swimming pool. On the second
floor exhibitors had booths set up
that offered items and services used
by the industry. Individual
workshops on Indian gaming issues
were held the last two days of the
conference. One source told the
Press jokingly that he believed half
of the people in attendance were
lawyers. He said, "I've been asked
by at least 50 of them if my
reservation had an attorney
representing us." He added, "I've
received invitations for drinks from
every law firm and casino
management group in the place."
Another person with the group said,
"This conference is all about
money."
James Crawford, Chairperson of
the Forest County Potawatomi Tribe
in Wisconsin, presided over the
opening of the conference.
Invocation was given by "Porkey"
White of the Leech Lake Band of
Chippewa Indians. Also part of the
opening ceremonies were the
Sisseton-Wahpeton Island Drum and
Dance Group. The keynote address
was given by Dr. Eddie F. Brown,
Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs
in Washington, D.C. Welcome and
introductions were given by Charles
Keechi, Chairman of the National
Indian Gaming Association, and
Myron Ellis, Chairman of the
Minnesota Indian Gaming
Association.
Eddie Brown, assistant secretary of
Indian affairs for the U.S.
Department of Interior, said in an
interview after he spoke to the group
that the tribes and states should be
given more time to make the 1988
act work.
Brown said some negotiations
have been slowed because the act is
unclear on some issues, including on
determining when state officals
aren't acting in good faith.
If those issues can't be clarified,
Brown said he would support
moving all negotiations to the
federal level. Brown said the issues
could be clarified in court or by
amending the act.
Anthony Hope, chairman of the
National Indian Gaming
Commission, gave the General
Session address and urged tribal
delegates attending the meeting in
Bloomington to fight back against
critics of Indian gambling.
He said Las Vegas resort and hotel
owners, pari-mutuel track operators
and other entertainment interests
resentful of successful tribal casino
operations should not expect the
government to reverse its policies on
Indian gambling. Federal laws and
regulations are designed to allow
tribes to sponsor legalized gambling
to develop their economies and
improve their standard of living. -
Hope, the son of entertainer Bob
Hope, was appointed by President
Bush to head the three-member
commission created by the 1988
federal Indian Gaming Act, which
spurred rapid development of Indian
casinos.
Competitive complaints from
economic interests opposed to
Indian gambling may not be
justified, he said, because, while
growing, Indian operations still
account for only 1 percent of the
dollars wagered annually on
legalized gambling in America. He
urged tribal leaders to combat
anti-Indian gambling campaigns
such as the one sponsored by the
Coalition for Communities for
States' Rights, supported by
California and Nevada resort
owners.
"What you have to do is lock
horns with them," Hope said, noting
that anti-Indian gambling interests
are pushing the federal courts to
rule that states are sovereign entities
that do not have to negotiate
gambling compacts with Indian
tribes. Federal law now requires
states to negotiate compacts with
tribes to allow any types of
gambling the states allow in some
form for non-Indian residents.
Roger Jordain, former Chairman
of the Red Lake Indian Reservation,
addressed the conference about the
importance of tribal sovereignty.
The conference offered numerous
workshops involving issues that
directly affect "Indian Gaming."
Most recently the issue of
"Gambling Addiction" has received
attendtion from the Minnesota
Indian Gaming Association, which
is now offering to contribute to the
cost of treatment for people who
develop this problem.
The Press asked Indian leaders
from Arizona what they liked most
about the conferece. They laughed
and said, "Going to the local casinos
and gambling."
By Gary Blair
Evelyn Bellanger, a White Earth
Indian Reservation enrollee, is now
behind the wheel for the Greyhound
Bus Lines in Minneapolis.
Bellanger, who lives in the Phillips
neighborhood of South Minneapolis,
feels her 9 years of sobriety is what
has given her the chance to be a
professional driver of this caliber.
She said, "When I was a little girl, I
used to watch how my dad drove,
how he shifted, and things like that.
I just naturally like to drive. I started
when I was 11 years old."
Bellanger described her six weeks
of training leading to the job as very
intensive. "We had to practice
driving in every type of situation
that would be encountered once
we're out on the road. Greyhound
teachs you their way of driving and
it's different than the average person
drives, lit's all about safety." She
received 97 of a possible 100 points
on her road test.
Bellanger, who has three years of
college, said, "I believe they wanted
someone with my work history. I
have a good driving record. I've
driven for the handicapped, elderly
and children." Bellanger's previous
employment was driving for the
Minneapolis Headstart porgram.
She's also driven for the
Metropolitan Transit Commission
and was one of the first volunteer
drivers for the Indian Hearst Project. (In
this role she transported the deceased
back to reservations for burial).
She said that with the new job,
there is a lot of paper work. "You
have to be able to understand written
directions and you have to be
assertive. I like to work with people.
I like working outdoors." So far,
Bellanger has driven the Chicago
and Billings, Montana, routes. She's
also driven to Duluth and Bemidji.
She said the best part of her job is
when passengers give her
compliments about her good driving.
Presently, Bellanger is a seasonal
driver. But, she said she's at the top
of the list to move to a regular
driver's position.
Wadena nixes judge's election ruling
By Susan Stanich
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
President Darrell "Chip" Wadena, at
the request of the Fond du Lac
Reservation chairman, has overruled
a tribal court judge's decision to
hear a case that challenges the
election victory.
In his letter to Fond du Lac Chief
Judge Deanna Fairbanks Tuesday,
Wadena took the matter out of
Fairbanks' hands, saying her ruling
was^'incorrect."
At issue is whether Sandi Savage,
a candidate for representative in the
reservation's Cloquet district, filed
her protest within the seven-day
deadline as required by the tribe's
election ordinance.
The day after Fairbanks ruled the
protest was timely and would be
heard, Fond du Lac Chairman
Robert "Sonny" Peacock wrote to
Wadena asking him to tell Fairbanks
Indian casinos to train
Bloomington, Minn. (A.P.)- The
Minnesota Indian Gaming
Association says it will train casino
employees to recognize and deal
with compulsive gamblers.
"Those people will be turned
away" from casinos, said Myron
Ellis of Leech Lake, MIGA
chairman.
The training is part of a three-part
to reverse her decision.
Fairbanks says the seven days
began the day after the election,
when candidates were certified and
results made official.
At least three tribal election
judges, including White Earth
Reservation attorney Peter Cannon,
accepted that interpretation in
protests in 1988 and mis year. But
Wadena, who is also the chairman at
White Earth, said in his letter to
Fairbanks that the timeline has
always begun on election day. He
was advised by Fond du Lac
attorney Dennis Peterson and
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe attorney
Kent Tupper.
Peterson said late Thursday that,
on behalf of the Fond du Lac
election board, he has petitioned the
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
Appellate Court to look at the issue.
At present, there's no constitutional
provision for an appellate court and
the constitution says election judge's
decisions are final.
The action by Peacock and
Wadena is a step backward in the
development of a healthy tribal
justice system, said Fond du Lac
legal advocate Jim Northrup Jr. He
added that Fairbanks, a judge, an
Indian and a Minnesota Chippewa
Tribe member, hasn't been allowed
to interpret a tribal law; instead, two
white attorneys interpret it in a
manner that will benefit certain
incumbents, rather than encouraging
a fair and honest election.
"It looks like the boarding shcool
mentality returned, where the white
man has to tell us everything,"
Noprthrup said.
Fairbank. declined comment on
the issue; Wadena couldn't be
reached for comment. Peacock
didn't return phone calls.
[Reprinted with permission from
the Duluth News Tribune.]
employees to recognize compulsize gamblers
program MIGA is sponsoring with
the Minnesota Council on
Compulsive Gambling. Ellis said
MIGA also will sponsor a fundraiser
in the Twin Cities to help the
council raise $90,000 for education
programs on compulsive gambling
and would provide education
programs to try to prevent casino
employees from becoming
compulsive gamblers.
Betty George of Duluth, executive
director of the Minnesota Council on
Compulsive Gambling, said 4.1
percent of Americans and 1.5 percent
of Minnesotans are compulsive
gamblers. She said studies have shown
that casino employees are more likely
to become problem gamblers than
gamblers.
>/
\t
1

Officials unsure of effects that pesticides are doing to Lower Red Lake
By Larry Adams
There are no apparent correlations
between the gamefish decline on
lower Red Lake and chemicals that
may be used in and around the
surrounding rice paddies. Red Lake
DNR officials claim.
According to Red Lake Aquatic
Biologist, Joel Rohde and Red Lake
DNR Fisheries Biologist, Dave
Connors, they claim that there
many extenuating circumstances to
explain any kind of gamefish
decline.
These comments are in response
to the article concerning chemicals
in Lower Red Lake in the July 3,
1992, issue of the Native American
Press. Sources in this article claim
that there are no serious effects
from the chemicals that may be in
Lower Red Lake. However, the
chemicals appear to present as well
as the siltation that was reported.
A source at the Red Lake
Fisheries attribute the June fishing
decline as part of a cycle that's
been happening over a 13-year
period.
Regarding the 33,000 pounds that
were brought in June is normal,
according to the Fisheries source.
"It's slow in June, [it] always is,"
the source said.
There are at least five "inland
stations" which monitor and detect
chemicals and water quality in
lower Red Lake, said Rohde.
Three stations located west of
Red Lake are the Red Lake River
the Sandy River and the Big Rock
River. The Pike Creek River in Red
Lake and Mud River of Redby are
the two other stations, claims Rohde.
The stations monitor phosphorous,
polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB's)
and methyl mercury, which are the
chemicals the DNR and the fishery
are very concerned with.
Rohde has been sending water
samples to the EPA lab in Duluth as
part of a two-year study of
chemicals in lower Red Lake. One
of the chemicals Rohde is most
concerned with is monitoring the
amount of phosphorous. The more
phosphorous in the water, the less
sunlight that gets to the plants.
The plants feed the roughfish and
when they spawn their young, the
fingerlings are food for the
gamefish.
However, Rohde would not release
any results to the NAP as he is still
collating data and information on the
study.
Dave Connors says that his
purpose as the Red Lake fish
biologist is to collect and assess data
on the Red Lakes.
Connors claims that the source of
the lead article in the July 3, 1992,
issue of the NAP "misinterpreted"
the information presented.
According to Connors, there are a
lot of other factors that are involved
in the gamefish decline, specifically
concerning the Red Lake walleye
population.
Other factors involved include
specific year classes of gamefish and
their hardiness, predation, natural
factors, the number and classes of
fishermen on lower Red Lake, the
types of nets used, possible chemical
contamination and the chemicals
themselves, claims Connors.
In 1970, there was a very hardy
year class of sheepshead in lower
Red Lake. That same year, the
walleye harvest at 500,000 pounds
and yellow perch harvest at 200,000
pounds were the lowest harvest of
walleye and yellow perch in the
history of the Red Lake Fisheries,
said Connors. The average annual
limit on walleye is 650,000 pounds
at the Red Lake Fisheries.
"The sheepshead from the strong
1970 year class are not of catchable
size, they're still babies," said
Connors.
"The speculation is that walleye
and perch have the potential to feed
on and crop off heavy year classes
of, for instance, sheepshead. But in
the absence of them [sheepshead]
during that critical year and two
after they were bom, this massive
year class [of sheepshead] were
allowed to take hold and find a niche
in the lake," Connors said.
In the five years that Connors has
been at the Red Lake DNR, more
than half of th sheepshead that the
commercial fishery takes is from
that 1970 year class.
The 1970 sheepshead are still
dominating the catch in lower Red
Lake. "Again, the speculation is that
there was a good year for the
production of sheepshead.
"Typically, if there was a lot of
walleye and a lot of predators
around that were three, four years
old, [like the] yellow perch, they'd
be eating those sheepshead"
[fingeriings,] said Connors.
Without natural predators like the
walleye and the yellow perch, the
sheepshead have become the
dominant species of lower Red
Lake.
There is no correlation in the
population of sheepshead and the
gamefish population, according to
Connors.
There have been big gaps in the
year classes of gamefish and other
species as well as considerable
increases. Another oddity is the fact
that the yellow perch intake was 1.7
million pounds in 1990. Such trends
as Connors' "boom or bust" theory
of fish population have yet to be
studied and understood.
Other factors that affect fish
population on lower Red Lake
include the increase of from 150 to
well over 600 commercial fishermen
now.
"It's far and away the largest
source" of fish mortality, Connors
said of the fishing in lower Red
Lake.
In addition to the fishes' natural
mortality, or being eaten by other
fish and the fish dying of old age,
there are other sources of fish
mortality.
There are at least four classes of
fishermen on lower Red Lake. They
include commercial, sport,
subsistence and "independent"
fishermen, said Connors.
Currently, there may be too many
fishermen fishing on Red Lake, the
sport, subsistence, or "gill netting"
and "independent" fishermen also
contribute to the decline, said
Connors.
Of the four categories, the
"independent" fishermen catch fish
population by using "illegal" nets to
catch fish with, Connors said.
The "independent" fishermen use
nets with a smaller mesh than Red
Lake fishing regulations allow.
These "illegal" nets have a smaller
mesh diameter than the regulation
of three and a half inches.
With the smaller openings, more
fish can be caught, but the fish will
be smaller and dumped because
these smaller fish are useless to most
fishermen as well as diminishing the
population.
According to the Red Lake
Fisheries Federal Code of
Regulations, each fishermen is
allowed a limit of eight nets that are
300 feet long by six feet deep a
night.
Some nets deeper than ten feet
have been confiscated. "A big factor
that we can't answer is the extent
that [the illegal gill-netting] that
goes on. Unfortunately, it's just
something we can't answer. We
know it goes on, and we know it has
a detrimental effect on the fish
population, but as far as trying to
identify the extent of it, it's just
something we can't identify," said
Connors.
Concerning what chemicals may
be in lower Red Lake, Dr. Bobby
Holder, a soil scientist at the
University of Minnesota, Crookston,
said it's hard for him to say exactly
what is going on in lower Red Lake.
Holder said that tests done on the
Clearwater River in 1990 and
concluded in 1991, southwest of
lower Red Lake showed that there
was evidence of phosphorous,
nitrogen, 2,4-D and Monoxydil.
Holder said that the seven
sampling sites did a "pretty complete
analysis" on the river as well as
some sites that were located in
wildrice paddies that surround lower
Officials/pg 3
By and For the Native American Community
fr
0«
Native
American
Press
We support Equal Opportunity For All People
A Weekly Publication
Tribes warned of false promises from gambling managers
Founded in 1991
Volume 2 Issue II
July 24, 1992
By Susan Stanich
New-Tribune staff writer
Bloomington, Minn. - Tribal
leaders should beware of
management companies that
descend on them with glittering
promises but unfair casino contracts.
That was the message a Shakopee
Sioux official gave Wednesday at
the annual National Indian Gaming
Association Convention.
The heated comments of Allene
Ross, vice chairperson of Mystic
Lake Casino near Minneapolis and
the only Indian on a management
panel, came after five other speakers
had advised tribal representatives on
how to pick management companies
and what to look for in contracts.
"I'm here to give you a tribal
perspective," said Ross, a former
tribal councilor. "I've heard a lot of
comments today like 'partnership'
and 'teamwork.' But in the past,
management contracts haven't given
us partnerships. They've give us
dictatorships and paternalism."
Some ofthe nation's 141 gambling
tribes manage their own operations.
Others turn everything over to
management companies, which
usually fund the building and
equipment and receive 40 percent of
the profits for five to seven years.
Ross said sometimes the managers
become dividers of the tribe as well,
maneuvering factions that they can
use to keep themselves in business.
"Our tribe didn't have factionalism
until we were fighting over a
management group," she said. "My
God, we were getting along well.
And now I don't thing we'll ever be
friends again."
Ross said the tribes hold most of
the power—jurisdiction, sovereign
right to license gambling, land—and
should drive hard bargains if they
use outside companies.
"But Indians are capable of
running our own casinos," she said.
Andrew Tottenham, who
represented an international gaming
consulting firm, cautioned that not
all management companies are alike.
When a new gaming jurisdiction
opens up—such as in Indian
Country and in Eastern Europe,
where his firm does business—"it's
a frontier and the first people in are
the cowboys," he said. "They write
contracts that give them a lot of
money; they put their own people on
the payroll; they give kickbacks to
contractors. There are a lot of sharks
out there."
Ross countered that her tribe offers
consulting services to tribes "for a
month, a week—whatever you need,
before you sign away 40 percent of
the profits."
The future looks bright for tribal
gambling, said the association's new
chairman, Charles Keechi, president
of the Delaware Tribe of Oklahoma.
Although the anti-tribal gaming
movement is busy and well-funded,
they are probably going to lose as
the public increasingly favors tribes'
rights to self-determination.
"Gaming is not an entertainment
industry as far as Indians are
concerned," he said. "We're
operating our enterprises for one
reason: To generate revenue to
help the infrastructure of tribal
governments, to help our citizens
with everything from eyeglasses to
education grants, to get medicine
for our elderly people...Nevada
and New Jersey gaming interests
are out there fighting Indian
gaming throughout the United
States. It's a matter of them
protecting their own turf, nothing
more."
As tribal gaming evolves,
unsavory characters—both in
management and among
customers—are being weeded out,
and networks are being established,
tribal officials said.
For example, Menominee Nation
police recently uncovered a
nationwide scam in which
'customers' use simple but
ingenious techniques to beat video
gambling machines.
The Wisconsin tribe filmed and
then closed in on three such
scammers, later trading them a break
on prosecution in exchange for
details of how the scam worked.
Copyright, The Native American Press, 1992
Bellanger drives Greyhound buses
Evelyn Bellanger a professional bus driver, ready to travel across country, pictured in front of her new rig.
National Indian Gaming Conference in Mpls
By Gary Blair
The National Indian Gaming
Association held its 1992
Conference and Trade Show at the
Radisson Hotel South in
Minneapolis. The 3-day event,
which was held July 20-22, attracted
Indian leaders from both the U.S.
and Canada. This year the
conference was titled, "Indian
Gaming U.S.A." The Press learned
from conference personnel that the
organization offered little
pre-publicity about the event,
because they didn't want to attract
groups opposed to "Indian Gaming."
This year the conference attracted
over 1500 visitors, including 124
exhibitors. There were cars in the
hotel's parking lot with license
plates from seemingly every part of
the country, including Canada.
Inside the hotel, casino managers
and their suppliers bumped elbows
at the bar and around the tables at
the swimming pool. On the second
floor exhibitors had booths set up
that offered items and services used
by the industry. Individual
workshops on Indian gaming issues
were held the last two days of the
conference. One source told the
Press jokingly that he believed half
of the people in attendance were
lawyers. He said, "I've been asked
by at least 50 of them if my
reservation had an attorney
representing us." He added, "I've
received invitations for drinks from
every law firm and casino
management group in the place."
Another person with the group said,
"This conference is all about
money."
James Crawford, Chairperson of
the Forest County Potawatomi Tribe
in Wisconsin, presided over the
opening of the conference.
Invocation was given by "Porkey"
White of the Leech Lake Band of
Chippewa Indians. Also part of the
opening ceremonies were the
Sisseton-Wahpeton Island Drum and
Dance Group. The keynote address
was given by Dr. Eddie F. Brown,
Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs
in Washington, D.C. Welcome and
introductions were given by Charles
Keechi, Chairman of the National
Indian Gaming Association, and
Myron Ellis, Chairman of the
Minnesota Indian Gaming
Association.
Eddie Brown, assistant secretary of
Indian affairs for the U.S.
Department of Interior, said in an
interview after he spoke to the group
that the tribes and states should be
given more time to make the 1988
act work.
Brown said some negotiations
have been slowed because the act is
unclear on some issues, including on
determining when state officals
aren't acting in good faith.
If those issues can't be clarified,
Brown said he would support
moving all negotiations to the
federal level. Brown said the issues
could be clarified in court or by
amending the act.
Anthony Hope, chairman of the
National Indian Gaming
Commission, gave the General
Session address and urged tribal
delegates attending the meeting in
Bloomington to fight back against
critics of Indian gambling.
He said Las Vegas resort and hotel
owners, pari-mutuel track operators
and other entertainment interests
resentful of successful tribal casino
operations should not expect the
government to reverse its policies on
Indian gambling. Federal laws and
regulations are designed to allow
tribes to sponsor legalized gambling
to develop their economies and
improve their standard of living. -
Hope, the son of entertainer Bob
Hope, was appointed by President
Bush to head the three-member
commission created by the 1988
federal Indian Gaming Act, which
spurred rapid development of Indian
casinos.
Competitive complaints from
economic interests opposed to
Indian gambling may not be
justified, he said, because, while
growing, Indian operations still
account for only 1 percent of the
dollars wagered annually on
legalized gambling in America. He
urged tribal leaders to combat
anti-Indian gambling campaigns
such as the one sponsored by the
Coalition for Communities for
States' Rights, supported by
California and Nevada resort
owners.
"What you have to do is lock
horns with them," Hope said, noting
that anti-Indian gambling interests
are pushing the federal courts to
rule that states are sovereign entities
that do not have to negotiate
gambling compacts with Indian
tribes. Federal law now requires
states to negotiate compacts with
tribes to allow any types of
gambling the states allow in some
form for non-Indian residents.
Roger Jordain, former Chairman
of the Red Lake Indian Reservation,
addressed the conference about the
importance of tribal sovereignty.
The conference offered numerous
workshops involving issues that
directly affect "Indian Gaming."
Most recently the issue of
"Gambling Addiction" has received
attendtion from the Minnesota
Indian Gaming Association, which
is now offering to contribute to the
cost of treatment for people who
develop this problem.
The Press asked Indian leaders
from Arizona what they liked most
about the conferece. They laughed
and said, "Going to the local casinos
and gambling."
By Gary Blair
Evelyn Bellanger, a White Earth
Indian Reservation enrollee, is now
behind the wheel for the Greyhound
Bus Lines in Minneapolis.
Bellanger, who lives in the Phillips
neighborhood of South Minneapolis,
feels her 9 years of sobriety is what
has given her the chance to be a
professional driver of this caliber.
She said, "When I was a little girl, I
used to watch how my dad drove,
how he shifted, and things like that.
I just naturally like to drive. I started
when I was 11 years old."
Bellanger described her six weeks
of training leading to the job as very
intensive. "We had to practice
driving in every type of situation
that would be encountered once
we're out on the road. Greyhound
teachs you their way of driving and
it's different than the average person
drives, lit's all about safety." She
received 97 of a possible 100 points
on her road test.
Bellanger, who has three years of
college, said, "I believe they wanted
someone with my work history. I
have a good driving record. I've
driven for the handicapped, elderly
and children." Bellanger's previous
employment was driving for the
Minneapolis Headstart porgram.
She's also driven for the
Metropolitan Transit Commission
and was one of the first volunteer
drivers for the Indian Hearst Project. (In
this role she transported the deceased
back to reservations for burial).
She said that with the new job,
there is a lot of paper work. "You
have to be able to understand written
directions and you have to be
assertive. I like to work with people.
I like working outdoors." So far,
Bellanger has driven the Chicago
and Billings, Montana, routes. She's
also driven to Duluth and Bemidji.
She said the best part of her job is
when passengers give her
compliments about her good driving.
Presently, Bellanger is a seasonal
driver. But, she said she's at the top
of the list to move to a regular
driver's position.
Wadena nixes judge's election ruling
By Susan Stanich
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
President Darrell "Chip" Wadena, at
the request of the Fond du Lac
Reservation chairman, has overruled
a tribal court judge's decision to
hear a case that challenges the
election victory.
In his letter to Fond du Lac Chief
Judge Deanna Fairbanks Tuesday,
Wadena took the matter out of
Fairbanks' hands, saying her ruling
was^'incorrect."
At issue is whether Sandi Savage,
a candidate for representative in the
reservation's Cloquet district, filed
her protest within the seven-day
deadline as required by the tribe's
election ordinance.
The day after Fairbanks ruled the
protest was timely and would be
heard, Fond du Lac Chairman
Robert "Sonny" Peacock wrote to
Wadena asking him to tell Fairbanks
Indian casinos to train
Bloomington, Minn. (A.P.)- The
Minnesota Indian Gaming
Association says it will train casino
employees to recognize and deal
with compulsive gamblers.
"Those people will be turned
away" from casinos, said Myron
Ellis of Leech Lake, MIGA
chairman.
The training is part of a three-part
to reverse her decision.
Fairbanks says the seven days
began the day after the election,
when candidates were certified and
results made official.
At least three tribal election
judges, including White Earth
Reservation attorney Peter Cannon,
accepted that interpretation in
protests in 1988 and mis year. But
Wadena, who is also the chairman at
White Earth, said in his letter to
Fairbanks that the timeline has
always begun on election day. He
was advised by Fond du Lac
attorney Dennis Peterson and
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe attorney
Kent Tupper.
Peterson said late Thursday that,
on behalf of the Fond du Lac
election board, he has petitioned the
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
Appellate Court to look at the issue.
At present, there's no constitutional
provision for an appellate court and
the constitution says election judge's
decisions are final.
The action by Peacock and
Wadena is a step backward in the
development of a healthy tribal
justice system, said Fond du Lac
legal advocate Jim Northrup Jr. He
added that Fairbanks, a judge, an
Indian and a Minnesota Chippewa
Tribe member, hasn't been allowed
to interpret a tribal law; instead, two
white attorneys interpret it in a
manner that will benefit certain
incumbents, rather than encouraging
a fair and honest election.
"It looks like the boarding shcool
mentality returned, where the white
man has to tell us everything,"
Noprthrup said.
Fairbank. declined comment on
the issue; Wadena couldn't be
reached for comment. Peacock
didn't return phone calls.
[Reprinted with permission from
the Duluth News Tribune.]
employees to recognize compulsize gamblers
program MIGA is sponsoring with
the Minnesota Council on
Compulsive Gambling. Ellis said
MIGA also will sponsor a fundraiser
in the Twin Cities to help the
council raise $90,000 for education
programs on compulsive gambling
and would provide education
programs to try to prevent casino
employees from becoming
compulsive gamblers.
Betty George of Duluth, executive
director of the Minnesota Council on
Compulsive Gambling, said 4.1
percent of Americans and 1.5 percent
of Minnesotans are compulsive
gamblers. She said studies have shown
that casino employees are more likely
to become problem gamblers than
gamblers.
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